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Conventional diesel combustion (CDC) is known to provide high efficiency and reliable engine performance, but often associated with high particulate matter (PM) and nitrogen oxides (NOX) emissions. Combustion of fossil diesel fuel also produces carbon dioxide (CO2), which acts as a harmful greenhouse gas (GHG). Renewable and low-carbon fuels such as renewable diesel (RD) and methanol can play an important role in reducing harmful criteria and CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. This paper details an experimental study using a single-cylinder research engine operated under dual-fuel combustion using methanol and RD. Various engine operating strategies were used to achieve diesel-like fuel efficiency. Measurements of engine-out emissions and in-cylinder pressure were taken at test conditions including low-load and high-load operating points.

Dedicated-EGR™ (D-EGR™) is a concept where the exhaust of one dedicated cylinder (D-Cyl) is routed into the intake thus producing EGR to be used by the whole engine. The D-Cyl operates rich of stochiometric which produces syngas that enhances the EGR stream permitting faster combustion and greater knock mitigation. Operating an engine using D-EGR improves the knock resistance which can permit a higher compression ratio (CR) thereby increasing efficiency. One challenge of traditional D-EGR is that the D-Cyl combustion becomes unstable operating with both rich and EGR dilute conditions. Therefore, the ‘Split Intake D-EGR’ concept seeks to resolve this problem by feeding fresh air to the D-Cyl, thus allowing even richer operation in the D-Cyl which further increases the H2 and CO yield thereby enhancing the efficiency benefits.

Water injection is an effective method for knock control in spark-ignition engines. However, the requirement of a separate water source and the cost and complexity associated with a fully integrated system creates a limitation of this method to be used in volume production engines. The engine exhaust typically contains 10-15% water vapor by volume which could be condensed and potentially stored for future use. In this study, the exhaust condensate composition was assessed for its use as an effective replacement for distilled water. Specifically, condensate samples were collected pre and post-three-way catalyst (TWC) and analyzed for acidity and composition. The composition of the pre and post-TWC condensates was found to be similar however, the pre-TWC condensate was mildly acidic. The mild acidity has the potential to corrode certain components in the intake air circuit.

The size and distribution of a vehicle’s tailpipe particulate emissions can have a strong impact on human health, especially if the particles are small enough to enter the human respiratory system. Gasoline direct injection (GDI) has been adopted widely to meet stringent fuel economy and CO2 regulations across the globe for recent engine architectures. However, the introduction of GDI has led to challenges concerning the particulate matter (PM) and particle number (PN) emissions from such engines. This study aimed to compare the particulate emissions of three SI combustion strategies: conventional SI, conventional stoichiometric low-pressure exhaust gas recirculation (LP-EGR), and Dedicated-EGR (D-EGR) at four specific test conditions. It was shown that the engine-out PM/PN for both the EGR strategies was lower than the conventional SI combustion under normal operating conditions. The test conditions were chosen to represent the WLTC test conditions.

Low-Speed Pre-ignition (LSPI) is an undesirable abnormal combustion phenomenon observed in turbocharged, direct-injection spark-ignition engines and is characterized by early heat release, high cylinder pressures and severe, potentially damaging knock. LSPI has been studied for more than a decade and engine design, operating conditions and fuel and engine oil formulations have all been identified as contributing factors. A significant focus on engine oil has led to the establishment of the Sequence IX engine test and the second-generation of GM dexos® oil requirements, as well as a convergence of engine oil detergent causality. Conclusions about the effects of fuel on LSPI have been more varied, but as part of a recently completed research consortium, the LSPI tendency of market fuels with a range of properties, including composition, boiling point distribution, ethanol content and particulate matter index (PMI) were evaluated.

The worldwide trend of tightening CO2 emissions standards and desire for near zero emissions is driving development of high efficiency natural gas engines for a low CO2 replacement of traditional diesel engines. A Cummins Westport ISX12 G was previously converted to a Dedicated EGR® (D-EGR®) configuration with two out of the six cylinders acting as the EGR producing cylinders. Using a systems approach, the combustion and turbocharging systems were optimized for improved efficiency while maintaining the potential for achieving 0.02 g/bhp-hr NOX standards. A prototype variable nozzle turbocharger was selected to maintain the stock torque curve. The EGR delivery method enabled a reduction in pre-turbine pressure as the turbine was not required to be undersized to drive EGR. A high energy Dual Coil Offset (DCO®) ignition system was utilized to maintain stable combustion with increased EGR rates.

Increased in-cylinder hydrogen levels have been shown to improve burn durations, combustion stability, HC emissions and knock resistance which can directly translate into enhanced engine efficiency. External fuel reformation can also be used to increase the hydrogen yield. During the High-Efficiency, Dilute Gasoline Engine (HEDGE) consortium at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI), the potential of increased hydrogen production in a dedicated-exhaust gas recirculation (D-EGR) engine was evaluated exploiting the water gas shift (WGS) and steam reformation (SR) reactions. It was found that neither approach could produce sustained hydrogen enrichment in a real exhaust environment, even while utilizing a lean-rich switching regeneration strategy. Platinum group metal (PGM) and Ni WGS catalysts were tested with a focus on hydrogen production and catalyst durability.

Numerous studies have characterized the impact of high injection pressure and small nozzle holes on spray quality and the subsequent impact on combustion. Higher injection pressure or smaller nozzle diameter usually reduce soot emissions owing to better atomization quality and fuel-air mixing enhancement. The influence of nozzle geometry on spray and combustion of diesel continues to be a topic of great research interest. An alternate approach impacting spray quality is investigated in this paper, specifically the impact of non-circular nozzles. The concept was explored experimentally in an optically accessible constant-volume combustion chamber (CVCC). Non-reacting spray evaluations were conducted at various ambient densities (14.8, 22.8, 30 kg/m3) under inert gas of Nitrogen (N2) while injection pressure was kept at 100 MPa. Shadowgraph imaging was used to obtain macroscopic spray characteristics such as spray structure, spray penetration, and the spray cone angle.

The influence of nozzle geometry on spray and combustion of diesel continues to be a topic of great research interest. One area of promise, injector nozzles with micro-holes (i.e. down to 30 μm), still need further investigation. Reduction of nozzle orifice diameter and increased fuel injection pressure typically promotes air entrainment near-nozzle during start of injection. This leads to better premixing and consequently leaner combustion, hence lowering the formation of soot. Advances in numerical simulation have made it possible to study the effect of different nozzle diameters on the spray and combustion in great detail. In this study, a baseline model was developed for investigating the spray and combustion of diesel fuel at the Spray A condition (nozzle diameter of 90 μm) from the Engine Combustion Network (ECN) community.

The primary focus of this investigation was to determine the hydrogen reformation, efficiency and knock mitigation benefits of methanol-fueled Dedicated EGR (D-EGR®) operation, when compared to other EGR types. A 2.0 L turbocharged port fuel injected engine was operated with internal EGR, high-pressure loop (HPL) EGR and D-EGR configurations. The internal, HPL-EGR, and D-EGR configurations were operated on neat methanol to demonstrate the relative benefit of D-EGR over other EGR types. The D-EGR configuration was also tested on high octane gasoline to highlight the differences to methanol. An additional sub-task of the work was to investigate the combustion response of these configurations. Methanol did not increase its H2 yield for a given D-EGR cylinder equivalence ratio, even though the H:C ratio of methanol is over twice typical gasoline.

Dedicated EGR (D-EGR) is an EGR strategy that uses in-cylinder reformation to improve fuel economy and reduce emissions. The entire exhaust of a sub-group of power cylinders (dedicated cylinders) is routed directly into the intake. These cylinders are run fuel-rich, producing H2 and CO (reformate), with the potential to improve combustion stability, knock tolerance and burn duration. A 2.0 L turbocharged D-EGR engine was packaged into a 2012 Buick Regal and evaluated on drive cycle performance. City and highway fuel consumption were reduced by 13% and 9%, respectively. NOx + NMOG were 31 mg/mile, well below the Tier 2 Bin 5 limit and just outside the Tier 3 Bin 30 limit (30 mg/mile).

The Dedicated EGR (D-EGR®) engine has shown improved efficiency and emissions while minimizing the challenges of traditional cooled EGR. The concept combines the benefits of cooled EGR with additional improvements resulting from in-cylinder fuel reformation. The fuel reformation takes place in the dedicated cylinder, which is also responsible for producing the diluents for the engine (EGR). The D-EGR system does present its own set of challenges. Because only one out of four cylinders is providing all of the dilution and reformate for the engine, there are three “missing” EGR pulses and problems with EGR distribution to all 4 cylinders exist. In testing, distribution problems were realized which led to poor engine operation. To address these spatial and temporal mixing challenges, a distribution mixer was developed and tested which improved cylinder-to-cylinder and cycle-to-cycle variation of EGR rate through improved EGR distribution.

Dedicated EGR has shown promise for achieving high efficiency with low emissions [1]. For the present study, a 4-cylinder turbocharged GDI engine which was modified to a D-EGR configuration was used to investigate the impact of valve phasing and different injection strategies on the reformate production in the dedicated cylinder. Various levels of positive valve overlap were used in conjunction with different approaches for dedicated cylinder over fueling using PFI and DI fuel systems. Three speed-load combinations were studied, 2000 rpm 4 bar IMEPg, 2000 rpm 12 bar IMEPg, and 4000 rpm 12 bar IMEPg. The primary investigation was conducted to map out the dedicated cylinders' performance at the operating limits of intake and exhaust cam phasing. In this case, the limits were defined as conditions that yielded either no reformate benefit or led to instability in the dedicated cylinder.

A turbocharged 2.0 L PFI engine was modified to operate in a low-pressure loop and Dedicated EGR (D-EGR®) engine configuration. Both engine architectures were operated with a low and high octane gasoline as well as three ethanol blends. The core of this study focused on examining combustion differences at part and high loads between the selected fuels and also the different engine configurations. Specifically, the impact of the fuels on combustion stability, burn rates, knock mitigation, required ignition energy, and efficiency were evaluated. The results showed that the knock resistance generally followed the octane rating of the fuel. At part loads, the burn rates, combustion stability, and EGR tolerance was marginally improved with the high ethanol blends. When combustion was not knock or stability limited, the efficiency differences between the fuels were negligible. The D-EGR engine was much less sensitive to fuel changes in terms of burn rates than the LPL EGR setup.

A series of tests were performed on a gasoline powered engine with a Dedicated EGR® (D-EGR®) system. The results showed that changes in engine performance, including improvements in burn rates and stability and changes in emissions levels could not be adequately accounted for solely due to the presence of reformate in the EGR stream. In an effort to adequately characterize the engine's behavior, a new parameter was developed, the Total Inert Dilution Ratio (TIDR), which accounts for the changes in the EGR quality as inert gases are replaced by reactive species such as CO and H2.

Dedicated Exhaust Gas Recirculation (D-EGR®) technology provides a novel means for fuel efficiency improvement through efficient, on-board generation of H2 and CO reformate [1, 2]. In the simplest form of the D-EGR configuration, reformate is produced in-cylinder through rich combustion of the gasoline-air charge mixture. It is also possible to produce more H2 by means of a Water Gas Shift (WGS) catalyst, thereby resulting in further combustion improvements and overall fuel consumption reduction. In industrial applications, the WGS reaction has been used successfully for many years. Previous engine applications of this technology, however, have only proven successful to a limited degree. The motivation for this work was to develop and optimize a WGS catalyst which can be employed to a D-EGR configuration of an internal combustion engine. This study consists of two parts.

The use of cooled EGR as a knock suppression tool is gaining more acceptance worldwide. As cooled EGR become more prevalent, some challenges are presented for engine designers. In this study, the impact of cooled EGR on peak cylinder pressure was evaluated. A 1.6 L, 4-cylinder engine was operated with and without cooled EGR at several operating conditions. The impact of adding cooled EGR to the engine on peak cylinder pressure was then evaluated with an attempt to separate the effect due to advanced combustion phasing from the effect of increased manifold pressure. The results show that cooled EGR's impact on peak cylinder pressure is primarily due to the knock suppression effect, with the result that an EGR rate of 25% leads to an almost 50% increase in peak cylinder pressure at a mid-load condition if the combustion phasing is advanced to Knock Limited Spark Advance (KLSA). When combustion phasing was held constant, increasing the EGR rate had almost no effect on PCP.

The ongoing pursuit of improved engine efficiency and emissions is driving gasoline low-pressure loop EGR systems into production around the globe. The Dedicated EGR (D-EGR®) engine was developed to minimize some of the challenges of cooled EGR while maintaining its advantages. The D-EGR engine is a high efficiency, low emissions internal combustion engine for automotive and off-highway applications. The core of the engine development focused on a unique concept that combines the efficiency improvements associated with recirculated exhaust gas and the efficiency improvements associated with fuel reformation. To outline the differences of the new engine concept with a conventional LPL EGR setup, a turbocharged 2.0 L PFI engine was modified to operate in both modes. The second part of the cooled EGR engine concept comparison investigates efficiency, knock resistance, combustion stability, and maximum load potential at high load conditions.

In light of the increasingly stringent efficiency and emissions requirements, several new engine technologies are currently under investigation. One of these new concepts is the Dedicated EGR (D-EGR®) engine. The concept utilizes fuel reforming and high levels of recirculated exhaust gas (EGR) to achieve very high levels of thermal efficiency. While the positive impact of reformate, in particular hydrogen, on gasoline engine performance has been widely documented, the on-board reforming process and / or storage of H2 remains challenging. The Water-Gas-Shift (WGS) reaction is well known and has been used successfully for many years in the industry to produce hydrogen from the reactants water vapor and carbon monoxide. For this study, prototype WGS catalysts were installed in the exhaust tract of the dedicated cylinder of a turbocharged 2.0 L in-line four cylinder MPI engine. The potential of increased H2 production in a D-EGR engine was evaluated through the use of these catalysts.

The ongoing pursuit of improved engine efficiency and emissions are driving gasoline low-pressure loop EGR systems into production around the globe. To minimize inevitable downsides of cooled EGR while maintaining its advantages, the Dedicated EGR (D-EGR®) engine was developed. The core of the D-EGR engine development focused on a unique concept that combines the efficiency improvements associated with recirculated exhaust gas and the efficiency improvements associated with fuel reformation. To outline the differences of the new engine concept with a conventional low-pressure loop (LPL) EGR setup, a turbocharged 2.0 L PFI engine was modified to operate in both modes and also compared to the baseline. The first part of the cooled EGR engine concept comparison investigates efficiency, emissions, combustion stability, and robustness at throttled part load conditions.